Airplane wheel chock



April 13, 1943.

, Q MORGENSEN, JR

AIRPLANE WHEEL CHOCK Fild March :5, 1941 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 /NvE/vrof? Orr-o Maese/v EMM?,

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` 4 RNAs/S Patented Apr. 13, 1943 UNITED STATES RMYELNT Giilfif.

(Granted under the act of March 3, 1883, as

amended April 30, 192B; 370 0. G. 757) 12 Claims.

The invention described herein may be manufactured and used by or for the Government for governmental purposes, without the payment to me of any royalty thereon.

This invention relates to checks, and particularly to airplane wheel chocks which will effectively restrain the motion of the Wheel and which may be readily removed from the wheel.

It is an object of this invention to provide a chock which may be easily and quickly removed from the wheel by the application of a lateral force of a magnitude well within human capabilities.

It is a further object of this invention to provide a chock which may be readily adapted for wheels of different rolling radii, to control the area of tire overlay on the toe plate.

It is another object of this invention to provide a chock having a toe plate of such a construction and an abutment member so associated therewith that the tire will automatically come to rest on the chock with only sulicient tire overlay on the toe plate to hold the Wheel in restrained position.

It is yet a further object of this invention to provide a chock with a toe plate arranged to cooperate with a side, or lateral edge,` of the tire to serve as a fulcrum for a laterally applied chock-removing force.

It is still another object of this invention to provide a lightweight foldable chock with which the wheel may be readily brought into operative relationship and from which the chock may be readily and easily removed, and yet one whichA is operative to effectively restrain wheel movement.

Other objects of the invention will appear from the following description taken in conjunction with the drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 is a plan view of the chock with a wheel and tire in restrained position.

Fig. 2 is an elevational View of the chock `in operative position.

Fig. 3 is a detailed sectional view taken along the lines 3-3 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 4 is a plan view ofthe chock in collapsed,

or folded, condition with modified structural de-4 tails.

Fig. 5 is a perspective view of the chock .in Fig. 4 in operative position with the tire of a restrained wheel shown dotted therein.

Referring to the drawings, and particularly to Figs. 1, 2, and 3, the chock is formed of an open- Cil ends of the legs thereof for pivctally receiving trunnions 5 and 5 of the V-shaped toe plate member 4. Integrally united with the toe plate member 4 is a frame member 7` having a portion 9 constituting an abutment member against which the tire I8 of a wheel restrained by the chock is adapted to rest as at 25. In the preferred embodiment of the invention, member 'l is shown integral'with toe plate 4. However, it is to be understood that the same may be pivotally attached thereto if so desired.

Integral with the back side of member 9 is a pair of plate members lll having pin-receiving openings therein and spaced apart to 4operatively receive strut member il having corresponding openings 24 therein for receiving pin M, adapted to releasably connect one end of the strut to the plates. The other end of the strut is provided with a plurality of openings 2?. adapted to be aligned with corresponding openings in plates l2. The plates l2 are integral with the upper rear portion of base member l and suitably spaced apart to adjustably receive the lower end of the strut. The pin I3 is adapted to releasably detachably connect the lower end oi the strut to the plate members. Loss of the strut member and pins is prevented by fastening them to chains l5 connected at. one end to oase member l and at the other end to pins and clip attached to the strut member. Attached to the base member is a pad member i5 which functions to prevent sinking of the base member when. the chock is used on soft earth. To one of the plates l2 attached a clevis Il' and a rope I8 for applying a lateral force to the chock for separating and removing it from the wheel.

In the operation of the device, the strut member Il is adjusted for the rolling radius of the particular wheel to be received in the chock. When the wheel rolls upon the chock, the tire .rst engages the toe plate thereof to prevent slipping of the chock during the remainder of the rolling motion. The tire then engages the member 9, being compressed sufficiently thereby in stopping the motion of the wheel, as at 25, to

' roll the Wheel back until it overlays the toe plate 2|h against the side of the toe plate member. 'Ihe areas overlying the toe plate member are, when the abutment member 9 is properly adjusted, of only suflicient area to transmit to the toe plate member such a part of the wheel load that the chock will be held in wheel-restraining position. The area at 28h serves as a fulcrum for a force laterally applied to the chock through rope IB. As a result of this construction, only a sufficient portion of the wheel load is applied to the chock to hold it in place, and not so great a force but that the chock may be readily removed from the wheel.

It is to be understood that in its broadest aspect the chock may be made solid, it only being necessary to provide sufficient clearances so that the tire is in engagement therewith at only the three preselected areas. In the solid chock embodiment of the invention, the abutment portion 9 may be made a separate part adjustably mounted. However, in the preferred embodiment of the invention the chock is made in skeleton form of lightweight tubular lor other material, the parts of which are pivotally connected at suitable places so that the chock may be collapsed or folded.

In the preferred embodiment, the chock may be folded by removing either pin i3 or I4, or both of these pins, and folding the frame and toe plate members with respect to the base member. The strut member may be tilted to any suitable outof-the-way position when carried by either the base member or the frame member, Yand Awhen detached from both members, may be placed between the pad i6 and the frame.

In the embodiment of the invention shown in Figs. 4 and 5, the base member la, journals 2a and 3a, trunnions 5a and 6a, V-haped toe member 4a, arms 1a, abutmentl member 9a, strut lla, plates I2a., openings 22a, and pad i661, are the same as the corresponding parts in the preferred embodiment of the invention illustrated in Fig. 1, the` pad Ia being soldered, welded or otherwise suitably connected to the base member.

In this embodiment of the invention, the abutment member da. is provided with a pair of collars 3l for conning a sleeve 3! rotatably mountedon member 9a. Integral with the sleeve 30 is a stud member 32 adapted to be received in strut member i la. Pin 26 is adapted to be received in selected openings 21 and 28 for fastening the strut to the stud member. The other end of the strut member may be fastened to the plate members |2a by bolt 33. It is to be understood that the bolt 33 may be replaced by a pin, and the strut member moved into folded position, with the :stud member 32 in position between arms 1a.

. Although a single preferred embodiment of the invention has been described, it is to be understood that changes and modications may be .made in the device without departing `from the spirit and substance of invention. Various modi-cations and changes may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the inventive concept, and it is intended that the invention be limited only by the scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A wheel chock comprising a support-engaging member, a frame member connected at one end to said support-engaging member and arranged at an acute angle with respect thereto, a V-shaped member connected to one of said members vand lying substantially in the plane of said support-engaging member. and a strut connecting said support-engaging member to the other end of said frame member, said members being so constructed and arranged that a tire restrained by said chock will have an area overlying an upper portion of said V-shaped member and a portion alongside of said rl-shaped member for` the purpose specied.

2. A wheel chock comprising an open ended support-engaging member, a frame member pivotally connected to said support-engaging member at the open end thereof, said frame member including; a V-shaped portion lying in substantially the same plane as and across the open end of said engaging member, and a portion inclined with respect to said support-engaging portion.

3. A device as recited in claim 2 and further including a strut connecting said support-engaging member and said inclined portion of said frame.

4. A device as recited in claim 2 and further including a strut pivotally connected to said support-engaging member and releasably connected to said inclined portion of said frame.

5. A wheel chock comprising a base member, a member inclined with respect to said base member and having a tire-engaging abutment, a strut connecting the upper portion of said inclined member to the rearward portion of said base member and a V-shaped toe plate connecting said base and inclined members and lying substantially in the same plane as the said base member.

6. A device as recited in claim 5 in which said base member comprises a framework having a pad connected to the rearward portion thereof.

7. A wheel chock comprising an open ended support-engaging member, a frame member pivotally connected to said support-engaging member at the open end thereof, vand a strut pivotally connected to one of said members and adjustably connected to the other of said members, said frame member including a V-shaped portion lying in substantially the same plane as the said support-engaging member and a portion operatively arranged at an acute angle with respect to said support-engaging portion, whereby a tire in engagement with said V-shaped member and said frame member will have a portion in engagement with an upper portion of said V-shaped member and a portion alongside of said V-shaped member.

8. A wheel chock having a tire-engaging toe member and an abutment member spaced upwardly and rearwardly therefrom, said toe member being formed by legs rearwardly directed at such a predetermined acute angle with respect to each other and at such a predetermined disf tance from said upwardly and rearwardly spaced abutment that when the wheel is restrained in the chock, areas of the tire located at Ithe sides thereof at approximately thev junction of the sidewall and tread of the tire overlie the said legs only sufficiently to transmit to them va chock restraining portion of the wheel load.

9. A device as recited in claim 8 in which' said areas of the tire press against `the inner sides Y,of said legs to thereby selectively constitute a fulcrum for a laterally applied chock-removing force.

10. A wheel chock comprising a 'support-engaging member, a V-shaped toe member, an abutment member spaced a .predetermined distance upwardly and rearwardly from said toe member so that when the wheel is `restrained in the chock with the tire in engagement `with' the said abutment member, the edges of the tire press against and overlie a portion of the edges of the toe plate, means angularly adjustably connecting said abutment memberto said supportengaging member to produce-for different sized tires-overlying areas of the tire of only sufficient size t0 transmit to the toe member a chock-restraining portion of the wheel load, the areas where the tire presses against the toe plates selectively constituting a fulcrum for a laterally applied chock-removing lforce.

11. A wheel chock comprising an open framework base member, an abutment member, a toe member connected thereto and an upwardly and rearwardly spaced abutment member carried thereby, said toe member being formed of leg members rearwardly directed at such a predetermined acute angle with respect to each other and at such a predetermined distance from said abutment member that when the wheel is restrained in the chock, areas of the tire located at the sides thereof at approximately the junction of the sidewall and tread of the tire overlie the said leg members only sufficiently to transmit to them a chock-restraining portion of the wheel load. l

12. Awheel chock comprising a support-engaging member, a frame member pivotally connected at one end to said support-engaging member, said frame member including a V-shaped toe member and an abutment member spaced upwardly and rearwardly at such a distance therefrom that, when the wheel is restrained in the chock, the edges of the tire press against and overlie a portion of the edges of the toe plate, a strut member angularly adjustably connecting said frame member to said support-engaging member to producefor diierent sized tires-overlying areas of the tire of only suflcient size to transmit to the toe plate a chock-restraining portion of the wheel load, the areas where the tire presses against the toe plate selectively constituting a fulcrum for a laterally applied chock-removing force.

OTTO MORGENSEN, J n. 

